Arise Ye Heroes and Tormentors
by hclightsaber
Summary: Those of you following When Love Goes Bad, this is the update. Everything is explained inside. Disclaimer in first chapter. Relationshipness has started! [Chapter 6 is up!]
1. Prologue

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Crazy legal stuff: Any and all characters belonging to the Yu-Gi-Oh enterprise are solely theirs. Any statements or implications about the sexuality of the characters based on the actions of said characters in this story are confined to this story. I do not pretend to know the sexuality of any of the characters as they appear outside of this story. 

Whoo, legal stuff is over! Now, for the explanation…

I'm sorry for taking so long to update the story. Finals were going on, I had a ballet recital that was coming up, homework was piling up, and I was going through a pretty rough time. That didn't stop me from writing a new chapter thingeemerbobber, however. I read it after I was done with it, though, and…lets just say I thought that my incredibly open minded English teacher would have thought it was terrible. I didn't feel that it was satisfactory at all, so I decided to take a look at the story as a whole. It felt like I was trying too hard, and in doing so I was doing work that wasn't as good as it could have been. Also there was a lack of major editing going on which contributed to the feeling. I decided that the way I started the story off was 1) unoriginal and 2) just plain odd. To suddenly jump into a story where two characters who are supposed to be on bad terms are living together just doesn't seem right, even if the situation was explained.

G-D DAMN CELL PHONE! Who on earth is calling me at 12:00 a.m.?

Aiya, alright, back to the explanation. Because of these problems, I decided that it would be best to start over, only this time begins before Jonouchi moves in with Seto. Don't worry, the story line and characters will still be here, though some of the characters may be appearing later on. Also, I don't pretend to be an expert on the written form of accents. As such, I'm going to have to pretend that Jonouchi doesn't have an accent at all. Unless someone wants to help me with it…

So, without anymore delay munches on yahk-gwa STORY BEGINS AGAIN! WHOO!

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Arise Ye Heroes and Tormentors

Prologue

It is not always easy to understand why evil simply does not give up. It comes, is defeated, comes again, and is defeated again; it is a never-ending cycle. Today's heroes often prove to be the heroes of tomorrow, so why should evil return if only to face the same enemy? Why doesn't is simply quit fighting when it seems that it will never gain a permanent foothold in the world?

These questions along with many others filed though Jonouchi's brain as he sat on the pier with the gang. Dartz had been defeated, his spirit cleansed of the hatred that had occupied it for 10000 years. No party, no club, no celebration of any kind could display the tranquility that flowed through the group right now.

A little over a day ago Seto, Yuugi, and Jonouchi had both been robbed of their souls by the Orikalkos, a powerful magical substance that had first appeared on Earth 10000 years ago. Dartz, then king of Atlantis, succumbed to the power of the stone and waged a war that spread across the known world of the time. He was helped by a creature of immense destructive power, awoken by the Orikalkos itself. This creature was known as the Leviathan. Ironheart, Dartz's father, battled with his son with the aid of three legendary soldiers who Dartz had imprisoned in the bodies of three dragons: Timaeus, Critias, and Hermos. Ironheart drove back the darkness and for 10000 years Dartz waited, gathering souls one at a time until one day when a small boy put together a puzzle, a puzzle whose completion heralded the salvation and the doom of the world.

'_That's the story in a nutshell_' Jonouchi thought to himself. He was still in awe after all that had happened. Mai, one of his friends, had been released from the control of the Orikalkos. Rafael, Alistair, and Valon had also been released from imprisonment. Dartz had finally been defeated and the Orikalkos destroyed. Timaeus, Critias, and Hermos had been released from an imprisonment of their own and had now returned to the world of monsters to resume their protective rolls. Everyone Dartz had captured had been set free. Above all else, though, Jonouchi would always remember what it felt like to be in bondage, to have his soul torn from his body and nearly lost forever. He could never repay Yami for what he had done. If it wasn't for the pharaoh and his faith in the heart of the cards, Dartz would have succeeded, he and his friends would have perished, and the world would be held in an evil grasp that no one could escape from.

Jonouchi's head began to throb and he laid down in response. The mere thought of how he had barely escaped a fate worse than death made his head hurt and his body quake with fear. He took a few breaths and calmed himself. Then he spoke.

"Does anyone know why evil keeps popping up? I mean, we defeat it all the time, so why doesn't it just quit trying?" Jonouchi asked. The group was silent for a time, regarding his query with thought. Seto was the first to speak.

"It is not in the nature of evil to give up. Evil is a belief, a thinking system, the essence of a philosophy deeply rooted in society. Evil could no more give up than you could stop wanting to help innocent people. It is simply not a possibility." Seto's short speech was met with more silence, as Jonouchi's brain began to comprehend.

"Wait, so evil can't ever truly be stopped simply because of what it is?"

"That is correct. Evil exists in all of us. It exists in all human beings. It is a hunger whose appetite can only be satisfied by the good that exists alongside it. There is a constant struggle going on in each human, save one." The group looked over at Yami. Yuugi had retreated from the physical plane in order to try and rest his soul. Yuugi realized how lucky he was to share his body with another entity. He could rest more quickly simply because he did not have to exist as most do all of the time.

Yami was aware of the eyes that were watching him, but he disregarded them. He was the only being whose heart was pure. To defeat Dartz he had to defeat the darkness within himself, and he was the only one who had to. Now he was a breed apart, though he did not think of himself as such. What did this mean? What would his life be like now that he no longer had such a large internal conflict to deal with? '_Not now_,' he thought. '_I'll deal with this later. Now is not the time to dwell on such things._'

Jonouchi propped himself up on his elbows and let his feet dangle over the edge of the pier. This place would forever be engraved in his mind. He would never forget it, not now that it bore something as critical as this. The last of the sun passed beyond the horizon and the first shades of purple began to appear. One by one the friends stood up. Seto had radioed for a helicopter roughly ten minutes ago, and it was due to arrive soon. Sure enough, the blades could be heard chopping through the air as the wind picked up. The gang looked up to see the helicopter slowly descending toward them. They quickly moved out of the way as the struts brushed the concrete, and then filed into the chopper. The helicopter almost grazed the surface of the storage units near the pier as they took off. They were off to Kaiba Corp. Headquarters and from there they were going home.

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So, there it is in all its glory. It almost seems like a prologue…hmm. I wonder how that worked out. I meant for this to be more philosophical than the rest of the story because it's the beginning. The next chapter will be much more life oriented. It may be longer too, I'm not sure. 

Mmmmmmmmm, yum! Food tasty!


	2. Chapter 1

Wow, I got this done quicker that I thought I would have. An English teacher read it and thought that it was really well written. I'm going to have to thank him for that, haha.

Oh, before I forget, there's a story up for adoption that I think people should take a look at. It's called Love Lost and Found. It's in the comic X-men section. Yeah, I know, Wolverine looks really funny in yellow and sky blue spandex. Someone really ought to consider adopting it though. The writer is really talented and the story deserves a good replacement. It's the same genera as this story, only it's an X-men thing. So yeah, take a look at it if you have the time.

Enjoy!

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Arise Ye Heroes and Tormentors

Chapter 1

_Cold the wind on the moors blow_

_Warm the enemy's fire glows_

_Black the harvest of Culloden_

_Pain and fear and death grow_

Jonouchi stood on a hilltop overlooking a yet unblemished battlefield. Two armies had been brought against each other. Honestly, it was like a scene out of a Godzilla movie. The National Guard of Japan stood facing an armada that even Jonouchi and the gang had never seen. Thousands of Orikalkos soldiers marched toward the soldiers, duel disks at the ready as they began to summon monsters. Dartz stood atop the Leviathan, watching from a safe distance as the first soldiers were defeated.

'_Twas love of our Prince drove us on to Drumossie_

_But in scarcely the time that it takes me to tell_

_The flower of our country lay scorched by an army_

_As ruthless and red as the embers of hell_

The fighting ended with ridiculous speed. Bodies lay everywhere, turned black by fire. Banners of the national color guard stuck out at odd angles from the ground, lying limp as if in testament to the soldiers who had lost their lives. Automatic rifles and ammunition packs littered the field, whose grass had been seared by the destruction brought against the peaceful people of Domino. The National Guard had been decimated, and only five combatants remained: Yami, Kaiba, Tea, Rafael, and Otogi. They summoned monster after monster to defend them, each of which was defeated as soon as it was called upon. Vultures circled in the sky, casting their silent, ominous shadow upon the five.

_Cold the wind on the moors blow_

_Warm the enemy's fire glows_

_Black the harvest of Culloden_

_Pain and fear and death grow_

Jonouchi made to run to them; they would need help, he knew. When he tried, though, he found that his feet were stuck in place. He might as well have been a statue. He tried to call out to them but found that he was too scared to speak. Fear levels skyrocketed within him at the discovery of his muted state. He continued to try, hoping that by some miracle his voice with return.

_Red Campbell and fox did the work of the English_

_MacDonald in anger did no work at all_

_With musket and cannon 'gainst honor and courage_

_The invader's men stood while our clansmen did fall_

He watched as one by one his friends were cut down, their souls being stolen by the Orikalkos to power the Leviathan. Soon only Yami remained, the power of the millennium puzzle protecting what was left of his strength and courage. Even that power failed, though, as Yami's eyes glazed over in a face all too familiar to Jonouchi. He toppled silently and took with him the last hopes for the world's salvation.

_Cold the wind on the moors blow_

_Warm the enemy's fire glows_

_Black the harvest of Culloden_

_Pain and fear and death grow_

_Now mothers and children are left to their weeping_

_With only the memory of father and son_

_Turned out of their homes to make shelter for strangers_

_The blackest of hours on this land has begun_

Jonouchi fell to his knees, a drop that seemed to take forever. He watched the empty shells that were once his friends and the time he had spent with them began to flash before his eyes. Fighting along side Yuugi as the Flame Swordsman; losing to Yuugi but still receiving the prize money for his sister's operation; rescuing Kaiba and Mokuba from Noa's grasp; so much had been done with them. They had been through so much together, and now future experiences with them had been robbed from him. Tears rolled down his cheeks at this thought; never again would he create a fond memory with them. Those days were over. He yelled skyward in frustration and anger, the lone member of a gang whose other members would never again touch anyone's heart.

_Cold the wind on the moors blow_

_Warm the enemy's fire glows_

_Black the harvest of Culloden_

_Pain and fear and death grow_

Jonouchi awoke with a start, the movement made by his gasping chest sending beads of sweat trickling down his frame. He glanced across the room toward the climate control consol. The blazing red numbers that cut through the dark of the room read 85 degrees.

"No wonder I'm sweating so much," Jonouchi said to the darkness. Lifting the covers from his body, he rose and moved steadily toward the open doorway. He walked down the hall way, passing three doors before turning right and finding himself in the bathroom. Jonouchi closed the door and flicked a switch, closing his eyes reflexively in response to the blazing light that issued from the ceiling. Reaching for the faucet, he turned on the cold water and cupped his hands, bringing some of the water toward him before splashing it on his face. He did this once more before shutting the water off and staring into the mirror. Jonouchi's eyes shot open at the sight of his reflection.

"The dream…" His thoughts returned to the real reason why he had woken up so suddenly. Gradually bits and pieces of it began to fit themselves into place, reforming the dream in its entirety. The dream, now a mere visualization, began to play again in his mind. Yami fell and tears streamed from Jonouchi's eyes again. Dread gripped his heart and he felt the need to reassure himself that everyone was indeed still alive. Bolting from the room, he wrenched the phone off of the receiver and fumbled with the numbers, struggling against the fear that was clouding his mind as he desperately tried to remember Yuugi's number. His finger pounded the receiver earnestly and he prayed that he got the number right as the telephone began to dial. A few miles away, ringing went off just inches from a small boy's head.

* * *

"I hope my plan works," Yuugi Motou said with a yawn, prying the covers of his bed back before lying down. He had decided to watch Totoro before going to bed in an effort to influence his dreams. After his string of nightmarish daisy dreams, he needed a dream about fuzzy forest spirits. Since Totoro was the one movie that offered such things, Totoro it was.

Stargazing had always been a fun pastime of his and with the sky lights above his head stargazing was made easier. It was so relaxing though that he often found himself drifting off to sleep before he found anything that really, really interested him. He giggled to himself as he recalled that the one thing he had managed to make out before his eyelids closed was the big dipper.

"Hmm, maybe I should have watched a horror film. It would have kept me awake…" Yuugi pondered. He dealt with more then enough horror outside of his house to want to bring it in, but it really wasn't that bad of an idea.

"I'll just go and pop…one…" Yuugi fell asleep before he could even reach for the covers. Sure enough, images of Rebecca chasing dust bunnies all over her grand father's trailer with a broom ignited his playful side and he began to chase them as well opting for a rather large blow-up mallet. A trickle of saliva made its way from the corner of Yuugi's mouth down the side of his face

Suddenly the blare of the telephone cut through Yuugi's fun causing him to jump several feet in the air in alarm. Figuring it must have been something really important, Yuugi answered the phone.

"H…hello?" Yuugi said into the receiver, stifling a yawn with the back of his hand.

"YUUG! YUUG, ARE YOU THERE! SAY SOMETHING!"

Yuugi had to hold the phone away from his head as Jonouchi's voice came barging through the phone cord and disrupting whatever peace was still left in the game shop. Frantic calls could still be heard through the phone as Yuugi's expression changed from that of a tired boy to one of someone whose perfect dream had been ruined. Resisting the urge to jump on the receiver until it broke; Yuugi went instead for a verbal lashing at someone who was quickly losing friendship points.

"DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW LATE IT IS! I WAS DREAMING ABOUT FUZZY SPIRITS AND YOU RUINED IT, YOU…YOU MUTT!" Yuugi clapped his hand over his mouth. He expected a verbal lashing of his own but what he heard was far from it.

"Yuug? You're okay? Oh thank God. I've got to go, though. Need to make sure that the others are okay. Bye!" The unique sound of a phone being hung up could be heard from Yuugi's end. Yuugi stared at the phone in disbelief, wondering whether he was dreaming right now.

"Oh shoot, if I am that means I was never really dreaming about totoros." Yuugi's face turned red as anger coursed through him, his temples throbbing in response.

"I want my dream about totoros!" complained Yuugi as he picked up a lamp, which was the closest thing to him, and hurled it across the room. It sailed out the doorway and disappeared over the balcony that overlooked the entrance to the shop. The sound of breaking glass was heard, followed by the alarm that Yuugi's grand father had installed a couple days before. With sirens screeching through the building, Grandpa Motou came skidding on one foot out of his room to see what was causing the commotion.

"Yuugi! Yuugi! What's going on?" came Mr. Motou's calls as he threw his head frantically about, still trying to find where he had installed the security consol. Yuugi, cranky and annoyed with the way the night had turned out, began to throw a tantrum, his baby face and height combined with the visual difficulties night time brought making him look more like a toddler than ever despite his spiked head. Gradually Grandpa Motou could hear something rise above the siren calls. It was getting louder and louder and more distinguishable by the second. He ran to Yuugi's room to see him jumping furiously on his bed. He closed his eyes and shook his head before walking back to his room and shut the door leaving the siren blaring.

* * *

Meanwhile, Jonouchi's hand was flying over the receiver, dialing number after number and getting a number of responses. Tea invited him to spend the rest of the night there to which he quickly declined. He wasn't exactly sure where she was planning on taking that. The rest of their already awkward conversation was made even more awkward as Jonouchi frantically tried to explain why he couldn't. He could tell that Tea wasn't buying it.

His conversation with Honda went as smoothly as their more serious conversations ever did, though Honda did bite his head off when Jonouchi told him he was worried because of a dream. Honda assured him that Ryuuji was alright as well. Ryuuji Otogi had moved in with Honda in an effort to get away from fans that had currently been swarming around his house. He even made a long distance call to Pegasus' home. As much as he disliked Pegasus, if it wasn't for the tournament that he hosted Jonouchi would never have been able to get enough money to pay for his sister's eye operation.

With just about everyone accounted for, Jonouchi dialed the last number he felt obliged to. His need for a phone book for only this number was a testament to how much he didn't like the person soon to be on the other end. Luckily all of the conversations he had with people had managed to pass the time quite nicely. The sun was rising, bathing the apartment in light and displaying the glory of the sunrise through the window adjacent him. Finding the number, he pounded in the numbers, loathing himself for even bothering. As the phone rang he asked himself why he was at all. The man had been cruel to him ever since he met him. He was just about to hang up when a sharp toned voice cut through his thoughts.

"Hello?" Kaiba's voice sounded unpleasant. Kaiba's voice was always unpleasant.

"Hey, Kaiba, I was just calling to see-" His dialogue was cut short as the CEO hung up. _Same old Kaiba_, Jonouchi thought to himself allowing a small chuckle to make itself heard.

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I hope you liked it! I'm off to talk with the aforementioned English teacher. Hopefully the next chapter will be uploaded by the end of next week. 


	3. Chapter 2

Wow, so, a lot of work spent on this chapter, particularly near the end. I kept reading the previous chapter thingees and couldn't help but feel that something was wrong. I came to the conclusion that they were dry. My friend Molly read them and told me why. Apparently I'm not puting enough description into them. Or at least the words are below what I'm trying to convey. So, lots of fun new words towards the end of the chapter. You can expect that the rest of them will be similar. Sorry if that bothers you! Also, I imagine that as I get more comfortable with the flow of the story I'll start to relax. Thus my writing with improve. Whoo!

For those of you who were reading the story before I started it over, the surprise mentioned later on is as much a surprise for you as it is for the gang. I hope you like it. In addition, chapters from the old story will be posted very soon. I'm going to edit them a little and then post them all at once. So, you can expect a bunch of chapters to read without having to wait.

Also, I learned some new names. For those of you totally familiar with both the Japanese and English names of the characters, you might have been confused as to why I was using Japanese names for some of the characters and English names for others. I blame ignorance! But yes, thanks to the lovely anime fanlisting website, I have been schooled. At least, my knowledge has increased. I don't know whether the Japanese series bothered to give Rebecca Hawkins a different name.

I would like to remind you of that X-Men fanfic that I mentioned in the last chapter. It's called Love Lost and Found and it needs a new owner. The current owner has the fic up for adoption. It's brilliantly written and deserves a new author. If you've checked it out or are planning to, please let me know. It would give me some manner of peace to know that it's going to be taken care of.

Next chapter is going to be very short. Like, really, really short. Please bear with me. All I need to do with the next chapter is set something up. I might add in a little somethign to make it more interesting. Still, really short.

Alright, enough talk, enjoy!

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Arise Ye Heroes and Tormentors

Chapter 2

Jonouchi found himself cooking in the kitchen. The smell of bacon strips submerged in oil combined with the crackling sound of cooking fat brought a very disgruntled Shizuka from her room.

"Oniisan, you know I don't like bacon. It does murder to my pores," Shizuka complained while attempting to rub the rest of the sleep from her eyes. Some of it wouldn't come off so she began to vigorously rub at her eye, finally dislodging the last of it. When she removed her hand she revealed a very red orb which began to twitch and blink. It was beyond her control. Giving up, Shizuka proceed to plop herself on the couch and close her eyes once again. Jonouchi grabbed a plate of eggs and set it on the coffee table in front of her. Then he turned to face his sister who squirmed slightly, wallowing in the warmth that the rising sun had placed on the couch.

Jonouchi whispered in her ear, "Oneesan, that's why I made you-"

"AHHH!" Jonouchi was cut short by his sister, who, startled by the noise right in her ear, had jumped into a sitting position, ramming her head into her brother's nose. Jonouchi tried to fight the reactionary sneeze that always came when he was hit in the nose while Shizuka threw her head around wildly. Seeing that no attackers were in the room, she turned to look at her brother. A quizzical look plastered itself upon her face when she saw her brother clutching his nose with both of his hands.

"Oniisan, why are you holding your nose? Did you sneeze again? You know I don't like it when you sneeze in the house…" Shizuka's scolding voice trailed off. Jonouchi tried very hard not to yell at his sister.

'_Honestly_,' he thought, '_this is my house. I should be able to sneeze in it if I want to_.' He understood that his sister hated germs, but one sneeze wasn't going to kill her. Shaking his head, the reactionary sneeze subsided; he headed back to the kitchen to watch over his bacon. He liked to take it off right when it started to get crispy; a few seconds after that could ruin it and he would have to throw the whole batch away. For some reason he just couldn't stand eating bacon if it wasn't absolutely, on the dot perfect. He was satisfied with where his bacon had gotten to, so he took it off the skillet, put it on a plate, and brought the plate to the coffee table. The automatic timer on the television went off, and with a flash of brilliant light the television turned itself on.

'_Ah, the wonders of Japanese technology and a plate of bacon_,' thought Jonouchi. He was quite stunned and amused with some of the things that the Japanese had been able to come up with. American food was, well, American food.

The news report was on. Seeing as there weren't any other interesting programs on the air at seven in the morning, Jonouchi decided to watch it, each crispy, doused-in-grease bite of bacon countering the bad news of the night. Meanwhile, Shizuka stared at her brother with wide eyes. He had begun to shove three pieces of bacon in to his mouth at a time which was something that Shizuka had never witnessed anyone do.

"Slow down, Oniisan, you're going to choke. And if you choke then you're going to spew bacon bits all over the couch and the carpet and the coffee table and then…" Jonouchi tuned her out. A particularly interesting news report had just come on.

"Barely a week after the strange monster holograms disappeared heralding the return of many people thought to be dead, selected individuals within the Japanese government and others of the higher social order, particularly here in the city of Domino, have gone missing. Police forces have informed us that they can find no connecting piece to suggest that these disappearances are related. They say that given this city's history with things of a stranger nature, however, they would not be surprised if they were. Due to the lack of suspects or any video recordings of the kidnapper, we have no description to offer you. The commander of the police force here in Domino simply suggests that you keep off the streets at night and avoid contact with any stranger who seems shady in any way to you. If you have any information, you are asked to call the Domino police headquarters."

Jonouchi's body began to shudder. His spirit had always been deeply rooted in the idea of helping anyone and everyone he could. It was a gift of sorts, his wish to help innocent people, but such gifts always come with curses. When he found a situation beyond his control like this one was, his body would shake uncontrollably in reflection. It is rare that such a gift is bestowed upon people without some sort of catch. He had noticed such things in Kaiba as well. For all of the money, intellect, and power that the CEO had, he came up lacking in peace, family, friendship, and love most of all. It was a sad thing to watch someone as powerful, as important as Kaiba was, be brought to their knees in an emotional manner by something that Kaiba regarded as his saving grace. Jonouchi found it hard to watch the man at times because of his ability to look at people at just see how they were feeling. Jonouchi didn't need to read body language; he could simply see the pain, the frustration, the anger emanate from within the center of Kaiba's very being.

'_Tsh, so what?_' Jonouchi found himself regarding, silently. '_The man hates you. He has never been kind to you, ever. Why should you care about his-_'Jonouchi looked at his hand. It was red, and a stinging on his cheek told him that he had just slapped himself. '_So this is compassion. Unconditional love. Or…is it something else? _'He continued to sit as though mesmerized by his hand.

"Jonouchi Katsuya, are you listening to me?" Shizuka scolded once again. "You know, you really ought to pay attention to people more often when they're speaking to you. I know that it isn't the only reason, but this probably has something to do with why you and Otosan-"

"Why we don' wha?" Shizuka was interrupted by the swaggering, beer bellied form of their father who came, feet shuffling, out from behind the hall corner. He had little decency and came bearing no shirt at all. Such foul behavior disgraced his father figure more in Jonouchi's eyes. Even with their twelve foot distance, Jonouchi could smell the alcoholic residue in his father's mouth, the pungent odor of far too much sake. "Wha' is this mess on the floor! Look at all this garbage!" Jonouchi looked at the sparse floor which he had cleaned last night before going to sleep.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Katsuya." Jonouchi had ceased referring to his father as Otosan. To him such a name required trust and respect, neither of which Jonouchi held for the man.

"Yeah, you betta be sorry, you ungrateful little wr-" Before Mr. Katsuya could finish he passed out and landed with a sickeningly wet thud on the floor. Jonouchi sighed walked toward his father in routine fashion while Shizuka wailed about their poor father. Shizuka's rant continued as Jonouchi dragged their father by the arms to his bedroom and placed him back on the bed. He closed the door behind him, and, resisting the urge to lock the door as well, headed back to their living room, hoping to enjoy the rest of his day.

Barely two seconds later, the phone rang. Jonouchi launched himself toward the phone. The only people who had his home phone number were his friends and telemarketers. As it was only just after 7:30 in the morning, he doubted very highly that any annoying salesmen were calling. His hand was inches from the phone when Shizuka grabbed it and clutched it to her face. She gasped when she heard the voice on the other end.

"HONDA! Oh, Honda, how are you feeling? Did you sleep well? How is your family? Can I come over? I want to see you. Is that alright? Are we doing anything later?" Shizuka asked in rapid succession. She always had been one for such conversations and her surgery, rather than humbling her, seemed to make her realize how short her young life would be. At least that's the way she saw it. Jonouchi had thrown a pillow at her when she tried to explain it him.

Jonouchi closed his eyes to try and calm himself down. The color of his face reflecting the fury inside of him, he asked with a quivering voice, "May…I have the phone now?" Shizuka gave him an incredulous stare and then went right along talking. Jonouchi's eyes opened and flashed dangerously in response. Shizuka shrieked and dropped the phone, retreating to the safety of her room. She locked the door.

Jonouchi's chat with Honda was a short one. "Hey, Honda, how are you…you want me to come over later…Shizuka too, got it…Kaiba has a surprise, hmm, I wonder what that could be…movies…sure, I can pick a couple up, any requests…okay…Ryuuji's going to pick me up…got it, I'll see you later…bye." He hung up the phone. Then, yelling, "Shizuka, we're going to the video store!"

* * *

A predominantly strident snore awoke Jonouchi's father. He sat up abruptly and looked around his room, completely confused by his surroundings. Hs brain was still suffering the aftereffects of last night's rice wine get-together at the local tavern. 

"Tha' was one wild nigh', huh?" he asked the empty room before his stupor caused him to slip off of his bed and on the floor. A single, more than audible obscenity escaped him as his arms lifted himself off the carpet. He took another look around before realizing that he was actually in his own room with his bed, his beer stained sheets, his nightstand, his lamp, his desk. Mr. Katsuya had a habit of asking himself questions out loud, which once again manifested itself with his question, "Where is ma food!" Mr. Katsuya liked to have his food brought to him. It made for easier leisure time when he could simply have the boy bring it to him. He hated Jonouchi. He hated him because he was everything he wanted. Jonouchi had friends who supported him without the need of four tequila shots in their systems. Jonouchi had a place to get away from home. Jonouchi had money, although he was too soft-hearted to use it like Mr. Katsuya knew he could. Jonouchi had traveled much, and made something of himself. Most fathers would have been proud, but only because they had secure lives. Mr. Katsuya did not. He couldn't truthfully say that he did. Everyday he went down to the bar, drank himself to exhaustion with other cold, lifeless people, then came home and collapsed on the bed to waste half a day sleeping. That boy was lucky, and that boy knew it. Mr. Katsuya wanted to be lucky. Mr. Katsuya was jealous.

He managed to find his way to the door and opened it. When he looked down at his feet to make sure that they were working properly, he saw a clean floor.

"I told you guys to pick up this trash!" he yelled. "You guys never do anythin' I tell ya! I ough' to ring your necks!" His knees buckled and he crashed headfirst onto the floor, his body landing in a construed position that most people could never hope to achieve by any other means. He laughed to himself, too overcome by the alcohol in his system to realize what had just happened.

Their phone rang; it rang and rang and rang. It rang seven times before than answering machine picked up.

"Otosan?" Shizuka's shrill I'm-in-public-so-I-have-to-make-myself-known voice rang through the room, aggravating Mr. Katsuya's hangover. "Just in case you're worried, we're at the video store. Honda wanted us to pick up some movies for later tonight. Everyone's going over to the game shop. I guess Kaiba has a surprise for people. Knowing him he's devised another brilliant way to play duel monsters. Anyway, we'll be heading back home once we've got the movies. Kaiba says that we need to look good. That's going to require that I reapply my make-up and stuff. See you in a bit, Otosan." She hung up.

Mr. Katsuya lifted his fist up in an antagonistic, almost comicalfashion. "Jonouchi!"

* * *

Videos, shoes, keys, plastic bags; all came flying through the doorway as Jonouchi and Shizuka returned home. Shizuka had decided that she couldn't live another second without talking to Honda so while they were at the video store she called him. They had been chatting it up for a good two hours or so and Jonouchi was really starting to worry about what the phone bill was going to look like. He just knew that his father was going to make him pay it, too. Mr. Katsuya always did that. 

"Oneesan, it's time to get off the phone. We need to get ready and-" Jonouchi's sentence was interrupted by an ill-intentioned glare from his sister. Then he got an idea, and a devilish grin spread across his face. "Fine," he said, "but you're the one who's going to look bad when you show up with bad make-up." '_Well, that worked_,' he thought to himself as Shizuka bounded toward her room. Jonouchi looked at the clock above their door and jumped. It was nearly time for them to leave for the game shop. Not unlike a rabbit, he dashed to his room and grabbed the best shirt he could find: a black button down dress shirt of which he had cut the sleeves off a couple months ago when they got to small. Dawning that and a pair of khakis, he pounded on his sister's door. He nearly hit her on the head when it opened.

"Are you read? We really, really need to get out of here." Shizuka nodded in the affirmative and they headed towards the door. As Jonouchi's hand reached for the door, a hand collided with the back of his head, sending his head into the wall. Jonouchi crumpled to the floor.

* * *

"Where is he?" Honda said looking at his watch. "They should have been here 15 minutes ago. They're walking here so I know they can't be stuck in traffic. You think we should head over there?" He looked at Kaiba. Kaiba, who had arrived almost an hour early, walked out the door and turned sharply toward Jonouchi's house. Yami, who was still taking over to Yuugi while Yuugi rested, ran out after him. Honda sighed and followed, his whole body struggling to support some unseen weight on his shoulders.

* * *

Meanwhile, Jonouchi lay unconscious in a heap on the floor. His father was bellowing obscenities at the boy, still so drunk that he couldn't even recognize that Jonouchi couldn't hear him. Shizuka had fled from the room dashing out the front door and kneeling just outside. This is what Kaiba saw when he got to Jonouchi's house far ahead of the others. He moved swiftly passed Shizuka and entered the house to see Mr. Katsuya raise his hand with intent to hit a boy on the floor. It was the mutt. 

Kaiba didn't know what, but something made him close the ten foot gap between himself and Jonouchi's father. He lost control of himself and when his eyes finally refocused he found Mr. Katsuya out cold on the floor.

Yami appeared in the doorway. "Honda is outside comforting Shizuka. What happened." His eyes locked onto the boy on the floor. "Oh my…"

"Call my limo," Kaiba said, hoisting Jonouchi up into his arms.

"But, Kaiba, I don't-"

"I'll give you the number. Just get the phone."

Kaiba placed the unconscious one on the love seat with grace and then sat down beside him. The blonde's bangs rested askew on the back. Slowly, his eyes opened and focused themselves, adjusting to the light that now poured into them. A balcony. The fingers that were entangling themselves in his sunshine hair. The smell of vanilla incense. The sound of Marik's maniacal laugher. His senses were returning to him. He could see and smell and feel and hear. There was blood on his tongue. He could taste, too. With great difficulty he tried to lift himself up only to collapse back against the pillow beneath his shoulders. His head was swimming.

Kaiba continued to weave his fingers though the boy's hair with surprising ease. Whatever shampoo Jonouchi used, it did marvels for him. The movement of the hair against his stationary fingers told him that Jonouchi was moving. He looked down to see the boy attempting to snuggle closer to the love seat cushions. This sight brought a rare smile to his face. '_I'm falling for a mutt_,' Kaiba thought to himself. '_That's not so bad, though, is it?_' Kaiba gasped. These thoughts bring another one to his mind, one whose deep, almost raspy voice he could hear coming from the game shop entrance. Gently removing his fingers from the blonde's hair, which brought on a puppy like whimper from the boy, he bounded, skipping most uncharacteristically for the game shop's card room.

A silhouette stood tall, dark, and handsome at the entrance to the shop, waiting for a familiar face to appear before he allowed himself to be coaxed past the threshold. The arrival of Kaiba was what he was waiting for. He placed one, then two leather booted feet inside the card room as he took off his jacket, his sinewy body contorting itself in more than a couple positions to accommodate the sleeves. Otogi, who was leaning against one of the glass showcases, felt his stomach turn. Anzu, standing next to him, shared his discomfort as she willed herself to not throw up. Silence descended on the room. People waited for something to happen.

"Finally you came, Kaiba," Grandpa Motou said with a chuckle, finally ending the awkwardness. "He was just telling us about how shy he can get around people he doesn't know."

"Why don't we fix that problem then," Jonouchi said with a yawn when he entered the room. The man's void like eyes darted towards the newcomer. He looked Jonouchi up and down. A curious malevolence rose up in the man and he decided to judge by what he saw. He did not like the boy and that was that. His malicious comments would have to be discreet, though; he did not think he could get away with crude and forceful discourtesy.

"Um, right, well, um…" stammered Kaiba, for once completely lost for words.

"I'm Rebecca Hawkins," stated Rebecca matter-of-factly. She toyed with her college uniform pleated skirt in an attempt to show off the fact that she was indeed a child marvel.

"I'm Anzu," said the other school girl stereotype as politely as she could. She held out her hand to emphasize her demeanor. The man took her hand and kissed it lightly. Anzu had to once again will herself not to vomit.

Introductions were made in a roundabout fashion. Much to everyone's surprise, Yami would not warmly approach the stranger as he usually did when meeting new people. Instead he introduced himself from afar. Jonouchi's introduction was met with hidden hostility from the man. Kaiba's guest attempted to crush Jonouchi's hand when they shook. Jonouchi was quite glad when he let go.

Everyone stood looking intently at the new man. There was an aura about him. This aura was far from pleasant, however. In fact, it made Yami and Jonouchi recoil. Both took a conscious notice of their common reaction to the newcomer. Seconds turned to minutes, and minutes turned to hours. It was as though the calm before the storm had fallen upon them all and they waited in anxiety for the man to say something. It was entirely possible that the man was trying to build up suspense because the longer he waited the more the anxiety grew. His lips parted slowly. Jonouchi could see the struggle that both halves put up. The skin clung together and fought to stay that way. It was like they were protecting the group from something vicious and macabre that was about to rear its repugnant self from within the nadir of his blackened soul. They lost that fight and began to reshape themselves, allowing his mouth to form a weighted sentence.

"I," he said closing his eyes as he smirked in some contemptible manner, "am Sayuu."

* * *

What did you think? Questions? Comments? Suggestions? Constructive criticism? Random hello's? Something? The whole "your story has been hit (insert number) times" thing is getting kind of depressing. I wonder if there's a way to turn it off. That would make me happy. Oh well, such is life. Please respond with something and I'll be sure to give you a big hug. See? Rewards! 


	4. Chapter 3

Here it is! Like I said, it's short.

* * *

Arise Ye Heroes and Tormentors

Chapter 3

"Shizuka!" came Ryuuji's whining voice from a distance away. "You rented the Lion King again!"

"Yeah, so?" Shizuka's pathetic excuse for a retort was saturated in her usual obnoxious tone. She was coaxing him, daring him to say something to really upset her. The corners of her mouth yielded to a dark idea growing within her mind and curled into a wicked grin. She quickly covered by shooting him an innocent look and began to weave her tapestry of pseudo-placating innocence. "Everyone loves the movie, right guys?" The group murmured lackadaisically. No one wanted to anger Shizuka. Jonouchi, being his usual tactless self however, waved his hand passively. His actions did not go unnoticed by Shizuka, who stared daggers at him. He made quick to remedy his mistake. "Besides, Simba and Nala as little cubs, sooooooo cute!" The fan girl sighed deeply. She was quickly joined by a vivacious Rebecca Hawkins. The two of them stared off into space for a time, images of kitty love dancing around their heads. They two of them began to babble incoherently, completely unaware that Ryuuji had taken the film and started it. Swahili lyrics broke them both from their daydreams.

"Hey!" they grumbled in unison. Five seconds soon found them plopped indolently in front of the television, their eyes wide with a wonder that even seeing the same film twenty times in a row could not quench. Scene after scene brought emotion after emotion to them. Ryuuji, Malik, Ryou, and their respective hikari's left the room when the two girls started crying during the love scene. They returned to see Shizuka and Rebecca singing along to Timone's drag song.

"How did they ever figure out what that meerkat is saying?" Malik wondered out loud.

"Simple," answered Ryou, "they went and searched for the film script online. You know that they've read the whole thing twice now, right?" Ryuuji said he had to go to the bathroom.

Simba gave his final roar and the film ended. Jonouchi looked to see Rebecca and his sister asleep on the floor.

"I suppose I should take Shizuka home," Jonouchi said getting up.

"Nonsense," Grandpa Motou replied either not catching the rhetorical nature of the question or not caring. "They're already asleep, let them stay where they are."

"Besides," Yami added, "after what I saw over there, you and Shizuka aren't going to be staying there. At least not for awhile."

"But, it's my home," Jonouchi countered. "I have to stay there; it's where I live."

"Not anymore it isn't. Jou," Honda said in what he hoped was a comforting tone, "the man has abused you for as long as I can remember. We all know that you hate him. I think it's pretty safe to say that he holds no fatherly affection for you, either. It's time to let go." Jonouchi sighed. Honda's words weighed heavily on his mind. Deep down, he knew that his friend was right. His father had long since beat any shred of reciprocal adoration out of him. There was none left.

"I don't have anywhere else to stay," he pointed out.

"You're staying with me, Mutt." Kaiba's abrupt statement made Jonouchi jump. He had been quiet for the whole conversation. Jonouchi really didn't like the idea of staying at Kaiba's house. He already hated the man, the last thing he wanted to do was live with him.

"No," Jonouchi replied, "I don't know if that's such a good idea…"

"You're staying with me, Mutt," Kaiba repeated. "You'll be safe there. Your father doesn't know where the mansion is and if he figured that out I've got security. You're staying with me." Kaiba wasn't offering. He was ordering. Jonouchi wasn't sure that he liked being ordered around, but he knew that Kaiba was right. It was too dangerous for himself and the gang if he stayed at the game shop. He couldn't afford to place people in jeopardy; it violated his ethics.

He sighed. "What are we going to do about Shizuka? I mean, if she can't stay at home…"

"I think I can take care of that," offered Grandpa Motou. "We'll use psychology!" He was terribly excited. "She'll stay here. Your father will expect that we'll expect him to think that she's here. Since he'll expect that we'll want to keep him away from her, he'll expect that we'll have sent her somewhere where we won't expect him to go. I suspect that he'll expect us to send her to Honda's place because of what we expect him to expect, so that's where he'll go." Grandpa Motou felt brilliant.

"So what do we do when he comes to my place expecting to find Shizuka and then doesn't," asked Honda. Grandpa Motou thought for a moment. Everyone could see his brain ticking beneath his gray hair.

"Aha! I've got it! Yami can protect her," he said beaming. Yami muttered an incomprehensible statement. "It's settled then; Shizuka will stay here under Yami's protection." Grandpa Motou nodded reassuringly to himself. Jonouchi was going to stay with the very man who had made it his life's work to torture him.

'_Great_,' he thought, '_this is going to be just great_.'

* * *

Review if you want. I need to run, haha.


	5. Chapter 4

Those of you who were reading When Love Goes Bad, you may recognize this chapter slightly. It's actually the first two chapters of the original story together. I'm editing them a bit so that they match the new fic, but that's about it.

Enjoy!

* * *

Arise Ye Heroes and Tormentors

Chapter 4

Painful moans and whimpers were being uttered in one of the rooms of Kaiba Manor. In the next room over, Jonouchi laid silent, tears rolling down his cheeks as he tried in vain to ignore the sounds. Those were Seto's moans, Seto's whimpers that he heard; Jonouchi didn't like it one bit. He knew what was going on, and he hated it. Why would Seto let someone do these things to him? The man had never let anyone harm him on purpose, for pleasure or otherwise, and people had tried before. When Pegasus' thugs cornered him while he was in hiding, he chose to feign his own death by jumping out of a window instead of staying to fight the men off. Why, why would he do this now? Didn't Seto realize that there were people out there who would treat him the way he deserved to be treated? Didn't Seto see the other boy who lived with him? Then again, how could he with that bastard patrolling Seto's every move.

The gang had hated Sayuu, Kaiba's boyfriend of six months now; everyone had from the moment he set his leather clad foot in the game shop. But no one loathed him as much as Jonouchi did and everyone but Seto understood why. Jonouchi had grown to accept his feelings for his old enemy, and to constantly hear that man in pain hurt him. It was as though Seto and Jonouchi were connected somehow, and when Seto was hurting Jonouchi got the full blast of it as well. A few of the braver members of their little group openly suspected jealousy as well. Jonouchi silently agreed with them but the real reason for Jonouchi's vehemence toward Sayuu was something that only he and Kaiba knew about.

About a week ago, Jonouchi lost it. He couldn't take the sight of Seto limping around his manor and wincing whenever he sat down anymore than he already had. Jonouchi confronted Seto. The action resulted in about thirty minutes of heated argument. They swore at each other occasionally, as well. Jonouchi nearly packed up and left but the thought of returning to his abusive alcoholic of a father and leaving Kaiba with no one but a young boy and a satal masochist made him stay. He wouldn't leave Seto with that man regardless of whether Seto could handle him or not. It was at this point that Jonouchi really hated Sayuu. The ever sadistic Sayuu would use Seto for his little "sessions" and then leave for a day. For half of that precious day Seto would be unable to get out of bed. The scratches from Sayuu's nails would bleed uncontrollably and only time seemed to help. Sayuu would leave Mokuba and Jonouchi to care for Kaiba, who would not be able to care for himself due to the massive amounts of electricity that Sayuu would run through him to incapacitate him. Put bluntly, Seto could not move to take care of himself. Thusly the other two boys were left to try and stop the bleeding. When Seto regained control of himself, he would hobble around his home aimlessly before sitting down gingerly on the couch to stare blankly at the television, obviously not taking anything in. Jonouchi was left to make Seto's food and put him to bed when the time came. It wasn't that Jonouchi didn't like taking care of Seto. Jonouchi hated that Kaiba needed someone to care for him and that Sayuu had never offered just made it worse. Sayuu's ability to keep everyone under his thumb was the final link in the chain that was Jonouchi's abhorrence. He couldn't stand the sound of Sayuu's name. He couldn't stand to hear people speaking about him. He couldn't stand to see him. There were just too many things to list. It was quite a long chain.

Jonouchi's mind returned to present time and he looked over at the clock. The clock that Kaiba had in the guest room was fast by five minutes; Jonouchi had found that out when he moved in. After doing the necessary calculations, the clock told him that it was four in the morning. Soon Kaiba's door would open…yes there it was. Sayuu was leaving. Jonouchi would wait for ten minutes after Sayuu's footsteps died out before he got up from bed. The ten minutes passed and Jonouchi wiped the rest of his tears from his face and went to the bathroom to get bandages. He was learning. Another link to be added to the chain.

* * *

Jonouchi rifled through the medicine cabinet for any antibacterial cream, hoping to smooth out the bandages and ease Seto's suffering. He found some and applied a liberal amount to one of the cloth bandages he found in the drawer beneath the sink. Once he was finish, Jonouchi took the strips of cloth with him to the kitchen. There he filled a bowl with water and placed the bandages in the bowl to keep them from drying out. Then he set about making breakfast for himself and Mokuba.

Even though it was the weekend, Mokuba had an odd habit of waking up extremely early. Jonouchi guessed that it was something that he learned while he was living with Gozaboro Kaiba, the brothers' foster father. The former CEO turned lost-mind-in-cyberspace had always made Seto get up early for his work. Mokuba saw very little of his brother while Seto was concentrating on his studies. The solution was to wake up early enough to get to Seto before Gozaboro could. Still, eventually Seto would be wheeled away to bury his face in numerous books, but at least Mokuba got to spend time with his brother when he wasn't exhausted.

Today was another one of those days. The grandfather clock in the massive living room struck five in the morning, and as soon as the chimes had stopped, Mokuba's shuffling feet could be heard coming down the hall. It seemed strange to Jonouchi that someone as young as Mokuba could have the stamina to wake up that early all the time. Jonouchi shrugged and returned to cooking the food.

"Something smells great," came Mokuba's disembodied voice from around the corner. The boy to whom the voice belonged soon appeared, nose stuck out in front of his whole body.

"Mhmm, strawberry crepes and waffles," Jonouchi responded. Grabbing the spatula, he neatly flipped one of the crepes before turning to the strawberry syrup. "Real strawberries in here, too." Jonouchi subconsciously stirred the drizzle with a wooden spoon while attempting to read yesterday's paper. It was lying at a bizarre angle for reading. The fact that it was all the way across the kitchen counter didn't help matters either. Then again, reading wasn't something he really enjoyed doing. "Mokuba, would you turn on the television, please." Mokuba obliged and turned on the TV. The news report was just beginning. A couple of robberies, an assault, someone's cat turning 23, nothing that grabbed at Jonouchi's attention. It was the city after all, and the news always liked to report all of the bad stuff. As for the cat, well, how excited could he get about a cat's birthday, even if it was 23. Still the rapid Japanese relaxed him and he allowed the television to remain on. Right about seven though, Mokuba's Saturday morning anime shows would come on. Mokuba always got really into those cartoons. It was quite amusing to watch his facial expressions as the plots continued. Whenever something really unexpected would happen, Mokuba's eyes would grow to the size of saucers; sometimes he would gasp. He had shouted loudly at the television a couple of times as well, using wild hand gestures and waving his arms around to emphasize whatever dramatic scene he was trying to put on. It made him look ape-like almost.

Jou smiled and looked over at the crepes.

"Just about done," he whispered to himself.

He reached for a plate and placed the crepes on it. Then he took the waffles (which by this time had already been finished and removed from the waffle iron) and stuck them in the microwave to reheat them. He may have been great at the chemistry aspect of cooking, but his organization of priorities was a little off. Still, it wasn't much of a hassle to heat them up again. Five minutes later, all of the food was on the table and waiting to be devoured. Jonouchi suspected that Mokuba would want to eat his breakfast in front of the television. He had no objections just as long as Mokuba remembered to clean up after himself. He wasn't much worried about that, though. Mokuba had always been good about cleaning up.

An hour passed, and then two hours. Jonouchi's mind began to wander to the bandages on the kitchen counter. The water would have cooled off by now. Yet again, Jonouchi's priorities were off. He decided that it would be a good idea to check on Seto now.

Standing up from the chair in the kitchen nook, Jonouchi called to Mokuba and the two of them headed down to Kaiba's room. Mokuba opened the door and the two of them looked in on Seto's figure. He lay still but his eyes were open. Seto's pupils darted toward the open door and the two bodies that stood silhouetted there. Apparently not much electricity had been administered during this session.

"Come in with those damn bandages and put them on me already."

Yeah, not a lot of electricity. Seto's voice was low and mumbled, but at least he was able to speak. Mokuba came bounding up to Seto's bedside and wrapped his arms tightly around his brother. Jonouchi walked gracefully up to the nightstand.

"Mokuba, could you go to the kitchen and warm up those bandages again. Bring a bowl of warm water, too. I need to be alone with your brother for a little while." Jonouchi spoke without taking his eyes off of Seto. Mokuba looked up at Jonouchi with questioning eyes before turning and walking rather quickly out of the room, shutting the door behind him.

Jou pulled a chair up beside Seto's bed and sat down, taking Seto's hand from beneath the crimson sheets to clasp it. For the whole five minutes that Mokuba was bustling around the kitchen Jonouchi sat there, unmoving, squeezing Seto's hand gently. A tear fell from Jonouchi's eye and landed on Seto's hand. The stunned man turned his head and looked at up at Jonouchi with a look of confusion. Jonouchi made no notice of the tear having appeared. The door gave a click and opened. Mokuba entered with the tray of cloth bandages and a bowl of warm water. Mokuba set the bowl and bandages down on the table and the two of them moved to pull the covers of Seto's bed down to look at the damage that Sayuu had done.

He had been relatively gentle during last night's sexual escapade. There were a couple of scratches stretching from the left side of Seto's chest down to his naval. His arms showed signs of early bruising as well. Compared with some of the gashes that Seto had been given though, these were only minor problems. There weren't even any scratches on his back. Jonouchi took one of the bandages and placed it over the two scratches. He took the remaining strips of cloth and wrapped them around the other's bruises. He hoped that the cream might help somehow. He was never very good when it came to being a nurse.

Mokuba, satisfied with their handiwork, left the room quietly. Jonouchi stood up slowly. He turned and walked to the door, becoming a silhouette once again. Then he turned again to face Seto.

"If you need anything, just call me. I'll leave the door open."

Jou's eyes lingered on Seto's helpless form and his he felt the unmistakable urge to cry. He exited the doorway, wiping the half formed tears from his eyes as he approached the living room. Mokuba had turned on the television once again, burying himself in his anime. As expected, he began flailing his arms around, various words of profanity escaping his lips.

"Mokuba, please keep your voice down. I need to be able to hear your brother if he calls for me."

Mokuba immediately quieted down, now simply mouthing the words instead of actually saying them. The arms were still present, flying in all directions as usual. Jonouchi chuckled to himself. What a tremendously hilarious child Mokuba could be. Jonouchi decided that it would be prudent to start working on some of his chores before it came time to start making lunch. Jonouchi set to work, washing, drying, folding, and ironing clothes; washing the dishes from that morning; picking up trash around the house, the normal household chores. The trouble was, Seto's manor was enormous, and that meant a lot of housework to do. Sure the servants were around to clean, but Jonouchi liked to stay down to earth. Therefore he cleaned the house with them. Seto said that it made him seem lowly while Mokuba lobbied Jonouchi's position. Mokuba was always good at winning these kinds of arguments with his brother; Seto backed down on the condition that Jonouchi didn't clean outside.

The telephone was ringing. Somewhere near him, the telephone was ringing. Jonouchi didn't care, though, he was too tired to answer the phone. That was until…

"JONOUCHI! ANSWER THE DAMN PHONE!"

Jonouchi sprang up from his rather casual position on the couch and ran to the phone, startled by Kaiba's loud voice.

"Moshi moshi" Jou answered with a yawn.

"Hey, Jou, did I wake you?"

"Actually, Kaiba's shrieking voice did."

Kaiba shrieked in protest.

"Jou, is everything alright?"

"Yeah, yeah, everything's fine, Yuug."

"Well, okay, Jou," Yuugi said, still uncertain. "I was wondering if you and Kaiba would like to come down to the Karaoke bar with us tomorrow. I've got to cover for my grandpa at the game shop tonight, but since we have no school on Monday I figured we could all go out tomorrow night for some fun."

Jonouchi thought for a bit. Sayuu was supposed to be here tomorrow. That bastard could wait though. Seto may be hurt, but if going out meant that Seto was protected from Sayuu for at least one night, that was worth it to Jonouchi.

"We'll be there, Yuug.

"Alright, Jou. We'll see you there at eight then. Bye"

"Bye. Oh, and Yuugi, thanks. You're really helping Kaiba out."

* * *

I hoped you liked it. Reviews are always nice, even if it's simply to reiterate what you said before. I'm working on Chapter 5 as we speak. You can expect karaoke in it, I promise! It wont be like last time, I swear! Oh, and something else. That's more of a secret, though. It's incentive to keep reading, muahahaha. 


	6. Chapter 5

So we come to it at last. There's a biiiiiiiiiiiiiiiig surprise at the end of this chapter.

Anyway, I need to mention some sort of copyright for the song in this fic. Let's go with this:

Hand Me Down is the property of the band Matchbox 20 and whoever the heck manages them.

There, I think that should do the trick.

Now, enjoy!

* * *

Arise Ye Heroes and Tormentors

Chapter 5

Kaiba tossed and turned in his bed. Everyday he lived in physical pain, but the nights terrified him. It wasn't enough that he had to be violated every other day; he had to be visited by Sayuu during the night of his days of rest. As the nightmare dragged on, it got worse and worse. Images got vivid to the point that he was sure he would be able to remember them the following morning. Then the screams started. The dream escalated until Kaiba was actually living his thoughts.

For those of you who have never had a dream as realistic as Kaiba's current one, let me try to put it into perspective. Imagine that you're fast asleep, lying safely in the comfort of your own bed, fields of tulips and marigolds stretched out before you in your mind. You're as peaceful as it is possible to be. Suddenly, the sky darkens. Lightning can be seen over head; the sound of thunder rings in your ears. Out of nowhere, a bunch of murderous beings appear and rush at you with swords, making wild slashing movements in an attempt to divide you in half. You, of course, do whatever you can to not let that happen. In response you start running for your life in the opposite direction (we're assuming that you aren't armed and have no combat experience). This dream might be so intense that your physical self might actually start running. Well, eventually you would run into a wall or something, so the dream would portray your cerebral self running into something. So you see it works both ways. This type of dream is very similar to Seto's current one. The only difference is that his dream is darker, much, much darker.

Kaiba was running. By some miracle he made it out of his room. He ran into the wall shortly thereafter, though. This brought Jonouchi promptly to his side. With much effort from the blonde, Kaiba was back on his feet. He felt weak, and he had to muster more strength than normal to remain standing. Once Jonouchi was sure that Kaiba could walk on his own, he let him go and watched him walk clumsily out to the couch. His lack of confidence had been met with an excessively icy glare from the brunette. Jonouchi followed Seto out to the living room and then exited to the side kitchen where he started fixing lunch.

Jonouchi called from the side kitchen, "Kaiba, we're going out later. Yuugi said something about a karaoke bar."

"I don't want to go out," came Kaiba's blunt reply.

"Well too bad, we're going out," Jonouchi retorted smartly. Seto's lack of response told him that he had won. Kaiba had learned quickly not to try and win an argument with Jonouchi. Jonouchi's stubbornness made him excellent when it came to debates. He simply refused to give up. He congratulated himself on his victory and then returned to his task, smiling all the while.

"What do you mean you're going out tonight?"

Sayuu was conducting a rather one sided interrogation. He had already asked Kaiba a bunch of questions without waiting for a response. He was very put-off by the fact that he wouldn't have a chance to satisfy himself tonight.

"Well, I'm not sure I like the idea of you going anywhere," He said matter-of-factly. You're very tired and it would be better for you to stay inside."

Jonouchi, who was listening intently, snorted loudly. Sayuu shot him a furious look.

"What's so funny!"

Jonouchi shrugged his shoulders and turned around to face the wall. He had learned long ago not to respond to any questions that Sayuu asked him. Jonouchi knew that he had a habit of acting curtly defiant toward people he didn't like, and he hated Sayuu. Sayuu glared a little longer at the back of the blonde's head before resuming his attack on Seto.

"Besides," he said, "I want you here with me." He put on one of the most transparent disconcertion acts that Jonouchi had ever seen. Mokuba snorted for the both of them. Sayuu flashed his eyes menacingly toward the boy who innocently pointed out that Miss Piggy was on the television.

Sayuu didn't take his eyes off the boy. Suddenly a croak broke the uneasy silence in the room.

"Sayuu can come with us," Kaiba's quavering and barely audible voice said.

"But—" Jonouchi began in protest. He was cut off by glares from not only Sayuu but Seto as well. Jonouchi sighed and surrendered, not wanting to argue with a man who was as capable of violence as Sayuu was. He nodded in agreement. While the man was occupied with an increasingly sloppy kiss with Kaiba, Jonouchi's eyes caught Mokuba making a number of obscene hand gestures in Sayuu's general direction.

"The karaoke's going to start soon," said an excited Honda, placing an arm around Shizuka and pulling her closer to him. He was the only person who heard the statement, though. Ryuuji was off autographing the t-shirts of a group of very anxious and excited American exchange students. Marik had his tongue shoved so far down his hikari's throat that even if the two had heard Honda, they would have been unable to respond. Ryou and Bakura were in a similar predicament. Rebecca had her nose buried in a text book that her grand father had bought for her. Seto was too exhausted to comprehend much of the world around him and Sayuu was looking around the club with a very smug look on his face. Yuugi, the only one whose Yami still didn't have a body of his own and who had resumed control of his own body after nearly two months of rest, was looking greedily across the table at Malik's abandoned root beer. Anzu, meanwhile, only had eyes for Jonouchi that night. He hadn't taken his eyes off of Kaiba since the moment they sat down at the booth. Anzu could tell that Jonouchi was upset about something. She was just about to question him about it when someone spoke into the microphone up on the stage.

"Okay," said a slightly short woman, "we would like to start the karaoke session off by picking someone at random to get the ball rolling." The woman looked around the bar and finally pointed at someone who wasn't even looking toward her. "How about you, with the blond hair?" she said rhetorically. Her question was more like an order than anything else, and her arm was pointed toward the gang.

Malik, who had stopped his make out fest with his yami once the woman started talking, slowly began to get up. As Marik quickly pointed out to him, though, the woman wasn't pointing at Malik. She was pointing at Jonouchi. Jonouchi, however, was unresponsive having still not taken his eyes off of Kaiba. It wasn't until Anzu nudged him out of his seat that he realized that had just transpired. Highly embarrassed, he blushed and rose slowly. His feet refused to move properly and turned his walk into something of a waddle. Eventually he made it up to the stage and took the mic from the woman. Smiling and patting him on the back, she exited the stage leaving Jonouchi alone.

_I don't know what to sing_, he thought to himself. The crowd was cheering though, and all his friends were beaming. Everyone except for Kaiba, though. The brunette was still unreceptive to what was going on. Looking at Seto, it finally it him what he wanted to sing. Excitement rushing through him now, he walked as calmly as he could over to the man running the karaoke machine and gave him the name of the song. The man, having heard the selection, placed a CD into the machine and then ran off to operate the lights. With an air of experience, Jonouchi grabbed a stool and placed it in the center of the stage, upon which he sat with great posture. Suddenly, all the lights went out and a single spotlight turned on and cast its beam upon the man who now radiated with professional confidence. The introduction began and Jonouchi brought the microphone to his lips:

_Someday they'll find your small town world on a big town avenue  
Gonna make you like the way they talk when they're talking to you  
Gonna make you break out of the shell cause they tell you to  
Gonna make you like the way they lie better than the truth  
They'll tell you everything you wanted someone else to say  
They're gonna break your heart, yeah _

From what I've seen  
You're just a one more hand me down  
Cause no one's tried to give you what you need  
So lay all your troubles down  
I am with you now

Jonouchi resumed gazing at Kaiba, but this time found that Kaiba was gazing at him in return. Jonouchi's voice had worked like an aphrodisiac, and Kaiba found himself not only waking up to his surroundings but also curiously intoxicated by the man who was now singing, it seemed, only to him. Their eyes met, and as this happened, something unlocked inside of Seto, something that he hadn't ever been able to sense before. He wanted that mutt up on stage.

None of this had gone unnoticed, and an increasingly malevolent Sayuu was failing miserably in his attempts to mask his malicious intent. Neither Kaiba nor Jonouchi noticed this, though. Their attentions were solely on each other as Jonouchi continued to sing.

_Somebody ought to take you in  
Try to make you love again  
Try to make you like the way they feel  
When they're under your skin  
Never once did think they would lie when they're holding you  
You wonder why they haven't called  
When they said they'd call you  
You start to wonder if you're ever gonna make it by  
You'll start to think you were born blind _

From what I've seen  
You're just a one more hand me down  
Cause no one's tried to give you what you need  
So lay all your troubles down  
I am with you now

I'm here for the hard times  
The straight to your heart times  
Whenever it ain't easy  
You can stand up against me  
And maybe rely on me  
And cry on me, yeah  
Oh no, no, no

Some day they'll open up your world  
Shake it down on a drawing board  
Do their best to change you  
They still can't erase you

From what I've seen  
You're just a one more hand me down  
Cause no one's tried to give you what you need  
So lay all your troubles down  
I am with you now

Lay them down on me  
Oh yeah  
You're just one more hand me down  
And all those nights don't give you what you need  
So lay all your troubles down...on me

Jonouchi was met with a roar of applause from the crowd. Anzu, followed by almost a million other girls, came rushing up to him and nearly knocked him off the stool when she hugged him. Jonouchi took the reaction that he got as a sign that he had done well. People were pressing pens, paper, pictures, and even random phone numbers into his hands, which he tried to refuse as politely as possible. There was only one person he wanted to talk with right then, and he began to grow worried when he didn't see Kaiba at the table where he had been only moments before. Bypassing all of the club patrons, he squeezed his way to the door and exited the building.

Jonouchi found the brunette leaning against the outside wall. He was staring at his leather shoes in a most uncharacteristic fashion. He sensed that someone was there, and his intuition told him that it was either Sayuu or Jonouchi.

Plucking at a random thought, he said nonchalantly, "You know, they killed cows to make these."

"Yeah, I know," came Jonouchi's reply.

"I would hate to be a cow. Any type of cow, really. If I was a dairy cow, my entire life would be filled with trips to the milking station. If I was simply meant to give birth, that's all I would do, have babies. If I was a beef cow, I would be fed and fed and fed to get fat and then I would be killed. Kind of monotonous, don't you think?"

"Yeah, it is," Jonouchi replied again.

"That's why I like being human. I have the chance to get what I want. It isn't all about the other people. It's a lot more about me and my wants and needs."

"Yeah, it is," Jonouchi repeated.

Suddenly, Jonouchi felt lips upon his own. Jonouchi opened his eyes wide in surprise and tried feebly to pull away, but Seto wouldn't have it. He kissed him harder, more intently, the newly unlocked feeling inside him overwhelming his emotions. Gradually Jonouchi stopped fighting as the kiss seemed to drift out of the realm of time. Jonouchi found himself pouring all of his pent up feelings into the moment; his hands drifted to the new territory before him, inspecting every curve and bump until finally nestling on Kaiba's hips. Then, slowly, Kaiba pulled back, Jonouchi's lips clinging desperately to his own. He brought his cheek right up against Jonouchi's own. This placed him at ease, and he closed his eyes in response. He inhaled the scent exuding and drifting upwards from the rest of Jonouchi's body and felt his body shiver. Jonouchi's hands were still at Kaiba's hips. Taking much care not to ruin the perfect moment that had been created, Seto inched his mouth closer and closer to Jonouchi's ear before once again resting his head.

"You're what I want. You're what I need," he whispered, closing his eyes again.

In the distance, the moon rose above the buildings for everyone to see.

* * *

So, I hope you liked it. Let me know what you thought of the ending. I'm anxious to see just how bad I am at this romance stuff. 

I wont be able to even start writing another chapter for quite awhile. I will be computerless for two weeks starting Monday, and then I have to concentrate on finishing this reading stuff that I have to do. Hopefully these other books will be better than what I've had to read so far. Blech, I hate reading when I'm forced to!

Anyway, it might be as late as early September before I can start writing Chapter 6. Hopefully it will not come to that, but it might, you never know.

Once again, I hope you liked it, and let me know what you thought.


	7. Chapter 6

I know I said that it would be awhile until I uploaded a new chapter, but I managed to find time. Hooray!

Anyway, I rented Constantine and watched it to death. Long story short, it inspired me to start another fic. It's called Son of Perdition and I'll be uploading the first chapter sometime between now and next Friday. It's a cross fic that will be posted here instead of in the movies section. Our favorite couple will be featured in it as real people that we, somehow, never saw. If anyone wants to help me edit, e-mail me. My e-mail address should be in my info section.

Lastly, there's more karaoke in this one. It'll probably be the last of it for awhile, though. As such, I feel compelled to put up a copyright thing.

Yellow and Coldplay are the property of Parlophone records.

Enjoy!

* * *

Arise Ye Heroes and Tormentors

Chapter 6

Jonouchi had always thought, even after he realized that he was gay, that having a boyfriend would be a strange thing. Now that he had one, though, he thought it felt nice. Coming home to a man who knew of your feelings, understood and reciprocated them, as opposed to being completely oblivious, was a welcomed change. It certainly wasn't as it could have been, though. Kaiba had spent the last week mumbling to himself, trying over and over to figure out how to break it to Sayuu that they were through. He himself had never had a boyfriend before, and he certainly had no idea how to break up with one. Besides, Sayuu wasn't a normal man; that much was sure. How many other men could boast, or would want to boast, that every other day they electrocuted someone they were dating? What was ethically required of Kaiba was so simple on a base level, yet the more he thought about this requirement the more complex it became. Kaiba really had to give applause to Jonouchi. He had been so patient. It seemed like he didn't really care how long it took as long as he got to be with him.

Kaiba was absolutely right, too. Jonouchi was more than willing to wait. Something told him that Kaiba wouldn't desert him, and that feeling was all the reassurance that he needed. Kaiba's rock solid devotion to the people he cared about in his life, evident in his relationship with Mokuba and Jonouchi alike, helped to reinforce this belief. Despite his faith in Kaiba's fidelity, however, Jonouchi couldn't help the sneaking suspicion in the back of his mind that however tactful Kaiba's words to Sayuu were, they would not go over well. Indeed, when Jonouchi factored in the eternally poignant fact that Kaiba's boyfriend of six months had spent roughly half of that time using every form of castigation known to man on his partner, the odds that the break up would not go well skyrocketed. Still, Jonouchi had always been an optimist; it's what had kept him alive through all of the things he had experienced. His cavalier attitude toward all of life's mishaps managed to hold his one worry at bay. This woe resembled more of an impossible nightmare than it did a probable reality. At least, it did to Jonouchi. He just wished that Kaiba would end it soon so that he wouldn't be subjected to torture all the time. It wasn't like Jonouchi's patience wasn't being tested. Jonouchi was getting tired of cleaning up Sayuu's mess.

Saturday dawned as early as it had been, and found everyone in their usual place with one exception: Kaiba was on the couch instead of lying battered in his bedroom. Sayuu had announced after the eventful trip to the karaoke bar the prior Saturday that he would be going away on "business" for a week. Not once had Sayuu ever discussed exactly what he did for a living with anyone, Seto or otherwise. Because of this, the news of Sayuu's impending business trip brought snorts from Anzu and Ryuuji who, after a surprising amount of discussion given their obvious skepticism of Sayuu's normality, had deduced that Sayuu was unemployed. The true whereabouts of Sayuu were unimportant to the three boys now enjoying the weekend morning in each others' company. Kaiba was the most thankful of the three for not only was he spared the repetitive masochistic sessions that had been going on for the better part of three months, he was also given time away from Sayuu to think about how to break up with him. This was a most welcome change to his life, indeed.

A series of phone calls the other day had landed Jonouchi and Kaiba in a plan to go back to the karaoke bar that night. The group was eager to hear Jonouchi sing more. Rebecca had scolded him more than once for hiding his vocal talent from her. Yami had laughed. Jonouchi wasn't sure that he wanted to go, though. Between the fan girls, American exchange students, autographs and phone numbers, he felt that he would be much more content at Kaiba's mansion. It was in lieu of this fact that he had pleaded with Yuugi to pick something other than a karaoke bar, but Yuugi had refused. He said that there were too many people waiting to hear Jonouchi sing again.

So it was at eight that evening that Jonouchi and Kaiba met the rest of the gang down at the bar. Mokuba had been filled with such a sense of peevishness when he heard that he would once again be left behind that Kaiba had given him use of the limousine and 500 dollars spending money to shut him up. Mokuba had promptly snatched the money from Kaiba's outstretched hand, then escorted them to the gated entrance.

The gang, Yami in the lead and Jonouchi desperately trying to hide his face behind Honda, made their way to a table in the front that was just being vacated by a group of very drunk men. Their slurred voices were just drifting away as Marik, the last person to sit down, did so. After a few minutes Rebecca stood and offered to get everyone drinks, something that everyone scoffed at before pointing out her ridiculously minuscule stature. Frankly, they were all surprised that she hadn't been accused of using a fake I.D. to gain entry into the bar.

"No bouncer in their right mind would expect a child my height to know what a bar is, let alone try to gain access to one with a fake I.D.," Rebecca had said with her usual all knowing manner. Honda nodded as wisely as he could, a look that was so transparent on him that more scoffs were heard around the table. Honda glared; the table tumbled into silence.

Plucking up courage, Anzu decided it was time to usher in a proper conversation.

"What are you going to sing tonight, Jou?" she said as delicately as she could. She knew that he did not want to be here.

Sighing and giving in to the realization that he would not be able to squirm his way out of performing, Jonouchi replied with "it's a surprise." The truth was that he had no idea what he wanted to sing. He had been given 24 hours to think it over, and he had used every single one of them, not sleeping a wink. This was partly because Mokuba had been having a nightmare and Seto wouldn't wake up to take care of him, but that was beside the point. The fact remained that even 24 hours of time had not been enough for Jonouchi to make a definite decision. He had pondered and pondered and still not come up with anything exact. He had, however, narrowed down his choices to two songs. It was at this thought that Jonouchi figured that he might have just told Anzu the truth. He supposed that he would make his final decision once he got up on stage, for at that time he would have to have a song no matter whether he was torn or not. Still, he hoped that some stroke of inspiration or perhaps just a random feeling would sway him enough to simply pick one of the two. He didn't like this indecisiveness. It wasn't like it was terribly uncharacteristic of him, but it didn't happen often. He certainly didn't like when it did.

Hours passed and arbitrary takers at the karaoke machine came and went. Jonouchi gave a surreptitious look around the club and noticed that it was swelling with people staring intently at the back of his head. With one last odious look at the group for dragging him down to the bar, he stood slowly with a groan and made his way through the mass of people towards the edge of the stage. The man, singing a song by Frank Sinatra with the voice of James Earl Jones, flashed menacing eyes at Jonouchi as he approached. With a sizably befuddled look on his face, he looked around the club and found the reason for the stranger's animosity. The entire club was completely fixated on Jonouchi, utterly ignoring the man on stage. The loss of peoples' attention was causing him to loose focus and confidence, which in turn caused his voice to get rapidly raspier. This of course made him loose even more audience, which made him loose more confidence; it was a demonic whirlpool of continued failure, or so he thought. The audience was quite glad to be given something else to pay attention to. Eventually the DJ cut the song short, and the man stomped off stage, making sure to hit Jonouchi with the full force of more than half his shoulder. All eyes followed the man as he stormed from the bar.

The moment the door closed, cheers erupted from the patrons. Jonouchi took it as a sign that it was now his turn. With one final deep breath, he put one foot, then the other onto the stage. Heaving himself up, he made his way over to the DJ to make let him know what he would be singing. Nodding, the DJ fiddled with the karaoke machine, and Jonouchi made his way toward the center of the stage. Jonouchi nodded toward the side of the stage, and a woman brought a stool out for him to sit on. He sat down to calm his nerves, and the introduction began:

_Look at the stars,  
Look how they shine for you,  
And everything you do,  
Yeah they were all yellow, _

I came along  
I wrote a song for you  
And all the things you do  
And it was called yellow

So then I took my turn  
Oh all the things I've done  
And it was all yellow

Your skin  
Oh yeah your skin and bones  
Turn into something beautiful  
D'you know you know I love you so  
You know I love you so

I swam across  
I jumped across for you  
Oh all the things you do  
Cause you were all yellow

I drew a line  
I drew a line for you  
Oh what a thing to do  
And it was all yellow

Your skin  
Oh yeah your skin and bones  
Turn into something beautiful  
D'you know for you i bleed myself dry  
For you i bleed myself dry

Its true look how they shine for you  
look how they shine for you  
look how they shine for you  
look how they shine for you  
look how they shine for you  
look how they shine  
look at the stars look how they shine for you

* * *

"I know I've said it, but that was awesome." 

"You're right, you have said it."

Anzu glared at Ryuuji. She had been praising Jonouchi all the way back to the Kaiba mansion. Her mindless worship had fallen on deaf ears, though. Or rather, they had fallen on ears that weren't being used at the moment. Jonouchi had put all of his energy into his performance with the result that as soon as they left he fell asleep. Kaiba had been carrying him.

"You should probably wake him up now, Kaiba," Yami suggested when they were a few feet from the entrance gate. Kaiba nodded in agreement and coaxed the blond in his arms awake. Reluctantly, Jonouchi allowed himself to be set down on his feet, and he stumbled the rest of the way toward the gate. Kaiba opened the gate via remote.

"Well, this is were we stop," said Kaiba with a yawn.

"Lucky, we've still got a ways to go." Anzu was fishing. Kaiba seemed too tired to recognize this and cater to the negative.

"Everyone should stay here. I know that you're all tired, and as Anzu has pointed out, the game shop is a ways away." Everyone stared bewildered at Kaiba as he said this.

"What?" Kaiba asked, confused.

"Kaiba," Jonouchi responded, "did you just invite everyone to spend the night?"

"Yeah, so?"

"As in, people coming in and staying in bed and then getting breakfast in the morning."

"Yeah, so…?"

Jonouchi put his hand against Kaiba's forehead.

"Jou, what are you doing?" Kaiba asked.

"I think he's checking to see if you're feeling alright," said Ryuuji.

Satisfied after a few seconds, Jonouchi shrugged and concluded that Kaiba must have been being genuine. Either that or he was drunk.

Jonouchi led the way to the door. Kaiba, meanwhile, assured everyone that there were enough rooms and more than enough food for the breakfast the next morning. Everyone was stunned by Kaiba's uncharacteristic hospitality. Still, they were not about to pass up the opportunity to get off their feet earlier than they would have.

Kaiba opened the door and they all filed in. After many good nights, everyone managed to find a room and went to bed.

* * *

It was close to one in the morning when Kaiba was awoken by a knock on the door. Grumbling, he lifted the covers off of himself and made his way quietly towards the front door. He had no idea who could be calling this late at night, and frankly, he had a feeling that the person on the other side of the door was something that he wouldn't want to see. 

"Do you have any idea what…Sayuu!"

His stomach dropped. He hadn't counted on Sayuu returning for another couple of days. His mind instantly flashed to all of the complications that were sure to arise. One thing was sure, if Sayuu found out that he and Jonouchi had started a relationship of their own this way, it would not go over well. Fate was working against him though. As if in payment of bad Karma, Jonouchi came waltzing out of Kaiba's bedroom with the comforter wrapped around him and walked right up to the brunette.

"Hey, Seto, who's…there." Jonouchi face turned stony and fixed. Time stopped. No one moved, but emotions began to surge through the three that stood there transfixed by what they saw. For Sayuu, the emotion was pure rage. How dare he lie with Kaiba, he thought.

For Kaiba, the emotion was fear. It was fear on many different levels. He was afraid of what Sayuu would do to him. He was afraid of what Sayuu would do to Jonouchi. He was afraid of what Jonouchi would do to Sayuu. And mostly, he was afraid of the fact that he had no control over the situation. Lack of control had always been one of his biggest fears.

For Jonouchi, his emotions were a mixture of both. He was afraid for himself and for Kaiba at the same time. That fear fueled his feeling of rage. Protection was the only thing on his mind, and the man standing outside the door was a hazard to his and Kaiba's safety. He wanted to hurt him, tie him up, turn him in, do whatever it took to get him as far away from Kaiba as it was possible to be. It was Sayuu who made the first move, though.

"Seto Kaiba…you have betrayed me.

A simple sentence was all he said, but hatred radiated outwards from it, and in a flash, Jonouchi was on the floor. He didn't even have a chance to see where he had been hit. Darkness closed around his peripheral vision, and soon even that was engulfed in black. Meanwhile, Sayuu had knocked Kaiba out cold and hoisted him onto his back. With one final sneer at the blonde on the floor, Sayuu took off into the witching hour air. Kaiba was gone.

* * *

So that's that. I personally thought that the ending was poorly written, but my editors insist that it's great. Anyway, I hope you liked it regardless. Remember, if you're interested in helping to edit Son of Perdition e-mail me. 


End file.
